Birds chirped in the distance. The wind blew softly. Leaves rustled.
Fairy Altria Wheelheart sat quietly on the front porch of her small wooden house, gazing at the sky, lost in thought.
It had been nearly one thousand five hundred years since the day she was brought into this Domain as a vessel of the Supreme Yin-Yang Duality Harmony Deity.
She still remembered that day clearly.
She had been only twenty-two years old, a rising genius of her Wheelheart family. Full of hope and ambition.
When the news arrived that she had been chosen as a Deitys vessel, shock was the first thing she felt.
But beneath that shock was something far heavier.
Even though she was the greatest genius her family had produced in generations, that achievement meant nothing compared to being personally chosen by a Deity of such an absurdly high level.
Her family, the Wheelheart Family, ruled a small lower realm in the First Heavenly Domain.
That domain spanned nearly a thousand light-years in diameter, yet their strength was pitiful in the grand scheme of existence.
Their strongest ancestor had barely stepped beyond Immortal Emperor stage. They had no deceased great figures, no terrifying legacies, and no powerful backing to truly secure their rule. Nor did they have any Deity that could make things easier for them.
They were a small family rising to influence slowly. They held a little influence in the Immortal Heaven. But maintaining influence across Heavens is a recourse consuming and challenging process without the Faith Attraction of a Deity.
In the Divine Heaven, they were nothing more than cannon fodder. So when the opportunity came, they did not hesitate. They sacrificed her without a second thought in exchange for protection.
Altria had understood it immediately. The moment the decree arrived, her fate was sealed.
It was common knowledge throughout the realms that anyone who became a vessel of a deity would have their cultivation permanently sealed.
They could never advance again unless they gained the deity's favor and were elevated from vessel to wife.
The people of her domain worshipped the deity who had become the source of her lifelong imprisonment.
She could not grow stronger. She could not kill herself. She could not seek help elsewhere.
She remembered the day the mark appeared on her forehead. A glowing, golden symbol, radiant and gentle, yet cruel beyond words. The character Wuji. A marking that let's others know who she belongs to...
Instinctively, Altria lifted her hand and touched the center of her forehead.
Sigh~
She sighed. Shaking her head, she stood up.
She was a woman of natural grace and quiet beauty. Her obsidian-black hair flowed down her back, her eyes dark and calm.
She wore a purple robe patterned with faint white dots, adorned with delicate ornaments that swayed softly with her movements, making her look like someone who had stepped out of a living painting.
She retrieved her sword from her spatial ring, stepped onto it, and flew toward a distant island within the estate.
She was going to meet her friends for dinner.
Altria enjoyed the cool breeze of dusk as she traveled at an unhurried pace. The air itself seemed to guide her forward. The sun glowed gold as it dipped toward the horizon.
She couldn't help but remember the first day she had arrived here.
She had been brought by her family, was dropped and they left as quickly as they came. And the man who was supposedly her husband...she had never even seen his face.
Not once.
When she arrived, she was assigned a small floating island of her own, with nothing more than a wooden house. Formations did all the minor chores so she never had to clean. She practically did nothing. Everything was taken care by the formation.
At the time, she felt strangely empty. It neither hurt nor comforted her.
But as days passed, loneliness crept in.
Slowly, understanding settled into her heart.
Her family had sacrificed her. Her identity had been sealed. She had no one to speak to.
Only then did she realize she was trapped. She could not die.She could not leave.
She could not seek romance or hope elsewhere.
It was around that time her current friends came to meet her. They looked at her with pity and quiet sympathy. They shared the same fate.
Together, they grew close.
All the vessels formed their own small circles. Some groups met often. Others never crossed paths again. The older vessels, those who had been personally brought in long ago, had actually seen the Deity. Most of them had not.
Almost no one had even been touched by him.
She learned many things from those women.
For fifteen hundred years, her days felt full when she was with her friends and unbearably empty when she was alone.
During those lonely moments, she would look up at the sky, where countless floating islands stretched endlessly until her eyes could no longer follow. Her eyes would try to locate which of the islands the Deity was in. What were they doing? Why would they have to make them suffer this cruel fate?
In her heart, she always asked the same question.
When will this suffering end?
She thought about the countless people who prayed to the Deity, begging for blessings, miracles, and salvation.
She wanted to pray too.
But what could she even ask for?
Let me go? Let me grow stronger?
That felt the same as asking the heavens why she was created at all.
And even if the deity released her, her life would already be over.
Once a Deity cast someone aside, it was not just social death. It was the death of existence in the eyes of the world. Not literally, but completely in perception.
If a Deity rejected a woman, people would assume she was flawed, cursed, or sinful. No one would dare associate with her. Some ruthless powers might even kill her outright, believing they were doing the world a favor.
Because of that, the vessels never prayed. They were prisoners. They were trophies.
They were bargaining chips for power and influence, traded between families and gods.
Altria sighed softly again as she approached the island where her friends were waiting.
A smile appeared on her face without her realizing it. Her heavy mood lightened without her realising.
She landed in the courtyard.
It was small and warm, filled with vegetable plants, a tiny pond where fish swam lazily, and a gentle fragrance that filled the air.
She stepped inside.
Five of her friends were already there, chatting happily while the host prepared dinner. When they noticed her arrival, everyone stood up at once. They hugged her warmly, laughing and speaking over one another.
Time passed.
They ate together, talked, laughed, and shared small joys.
None of them felt like returning to their own islands that night.
So they stayed over.